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Amazon tested a search-results design in August 2023 that replaced the usual rating count with the percentage of ratings giving a product four stars or higher. For example, a listing could show 4.8 stars · 94% rated 4 stars or higher instead of 4.8 stars · 12,345 ratings.
The change was reported as a limited experiment, not a confirmed permanent redesign. The percentage display later disappeared when the search was checked again, and there is no evidence that it became Amazon’s standard interface across the U.S. marketplace as of 2026.
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What Amazon tested
The experiment changed the secondary rating signal shown on some Amazon product-search pages. The average score remained visible, but the conventional number of ratings was replaced by a positive-rating percentage.
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| Average rating | Numerical score with star symbols | Numerical score with a star symbol |
| Additional signal | Total number of ratings or reviews | Percentage of ratings at four stars or higher |
The original report described examples such as 4.3 or 4.8 paired with percentages including 84% and 94%. Those examples describe the reported test; they are not a current Amazon-wide interface standard. See GeekWire’s report from August 21, 2023.
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Where shoppers saw the change
The format appeared on product-search pages, including searches such as “face wash.” It was not necessarily the same display shoppers saw after opening an individual product-detail page.
Amazon commonly limits interface experiments to particular customer accounts, devices, apps, websites, marketplaces, categories, search queries, or traffic groups. A shopper’s location and login status can also affect which version appears. The fact that one person saw the percentage does not establish that Amazon rolled it out to every customer.
Why a percentage could be useful—and misleading
A figure such as “94% rated 4 stars or higher” may be faster to scan than a star average followed by a large count. It gives shoppers an immediate sense of how consistently reviewers rated the product at least four stars, and it can make dense search-result cards easier to compare.
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But the metric also removes important context. A product rated four stars or higher by 94% of 50 people does not have the same evidence base as a product with the same percentage across 50,000 ratings. The percentage may therefore make a newer listing look visually comparable to a long-established one, even though the underlying sample sizes are very different.
It is also easy to misread. “94% rated 4 stars or higher” does not mean that 94% of customers gave five stars. It does not show the complete distribution of one-, two-, three-, four-, and five-star ratings. Nor does it mean 94% of written reviews were positive, since Amazon distinguishes between star ratings and written reviews.
Why the rating count still matters
The number beside a product’s stars is not a definitive quality score. It is nevertheless useful context because it indicates the approximate size of the rating sample and helps shoppers compare products with similar average scores.
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Review volume can also expose uncertainty. A very high score supported by relatively few ratings may deserve closer inspection than the same score supported by a much larger body of feedback. Conversely, a large accumulated rating total may reflect older versions, changing materials, or past customer experiences that do not perfectly represent the product being sold today.
Amazon says its star-rating calculation is not simply an unweighted arithmetic average. Its description of customer ratings says the calculation uses machine-learning factors that can include review recency and whether the reviewer purchased the item. That makes the displayed average useful as a summary, but it should not be treated as a transparent statistical calculation that shoppers can reproduce from the visible counts alone.
What happened to the 2023 experiment?
The percentage format was not consistently visible even during the original reporting period. After seeing it, the reporter searched again later and found the conventional rating-count presentation had returned. The star graphic also appeared simplified to a single star next to the numerical rating.
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That pattern is consistent with a limited or A/B interface test. It does not prove that Amazon abandoned the idea everywhere, that the test failed, or that the company permanently adopted it. Amazon did not publicly announce a permanent rollout plan for the 2023 display in the reporting cited here.
What this test was not
Not the same as hiding ratings: In August 2024, Amazon tested removing product star ratings and review-count totals from some search-result listings. The information remained available on individual product pages, according to Fortune’s report. That was materially different from replacing the count with a “4+ stars” percentage.
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Not a variation-level review policy: Amazon also announced changes beginning February 12, 2026, with a gradual rollout through May 31, 2026, affecting when reviews are shared between product variations. Reviews may continue to be shared for minor differences such as color or pattern, while variations with meaningful differences in functionality or specifications may no longer share the same review pool. The details are in Amazon’s Seller Central announcement.
How shoppers should evaluate a listing
- Open the product page. If a search card shows a percentage—or shows no rating information—check the detail page for the available rating total and full breakdown.
- Define the percentage correctly. A four-star-or-higher percentage is a threshold measure, not a five-star percentage, written-review sentiment score, or seller-feedback score.
- Read recent lower-rated feedback. Look for recurring complaints about durability, sizing, compatibility, delivery, or changes to the product.
- Confirm the exact variation. Color-only variants may share reviews, while variations with different specifications or functionality may not, depending on Amazon’s policy and rollout.
- Separate product and seller performance. If several merchants sell the same item, inspect seller feedback independently from the item’s customer rating.
Why shoppers may see different rating displays
A reader trying to reproduce the 2023 test today may not see it because the experiment may have ended, may have been limited to certain accounts or products, or may have been available only on Amazon’s website or app. Amazon’s search design may also have changed since 2023, and marketplace or geographic differences can produce different results.
For personal-finance decisions, the practical lesson is simple: do not make a purchase decision—or assume one listing is a better value—based only on the compact signal shown in a search card. Open the listing and verify the rating context, product variation, seller, price, shipping terms, and return policy before committing money.
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Amazon’s 2023, 2024, and 2026 changes point to continuing experimentation with how trust signals appear during shopping. The company has tested emphasizing positive-rating percentages, temporarily removing product ratings from some search cards, adding seller feedback, and changing how variation reviews are shared.
Those developments should not automatically be treated as one unified program or as evidence of a particular motive. Amazon has not established that the 2023 experiment was intended to favor new products, increase conversions, reduce review manipulation, or hide negative feedback. Those are possible consequences or hypotheses—not confirmed explanations.
Bottom line
Amazon’s reported August 2023 test shifted emphasis from how many people rated a product to what share rated it four stars or higher. That could make search comparisons faster, but it could also obscure sample size and make small and large rating pools look more alike. The display later reverted for the reporter, and available evidence does not show that it became a permanent Amazon-wide standard as of 2026.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
